Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Home Theater Review - Toshiba HD-A1 HD DVD Player

I might just have to take the plunge and get one of these suckers.

http://www.ultimateavmag.com/hddiscplayers/506toshibahd/index.html

Mike, I thought I'd ask if you went ahead and purchased the hd-dvd player? Any thoughts you'd like to share?

Thanks.

No, I didn’t buy one yet……

I’m thinking about it, because I do need to buy another player. The only thing holding me back is that this is a first generation new gadget. Plus, there are a couple others coming out in a few months.

One thing’s for sure, according to everything I’ve read the image this thing puts out is superior to anything else on the market.

You read the review and still want to buy one? Heck that review has made me want to stear very clear of this product. My trigger finger is back in my pocket for the foreseeable future.

I agree that the review would make me hesitate also, in a few months Blu-ray will be coming out, so I'll wait at least that long.

Everything I have read indicates the first generation Toshiba's have some serious problems. Not really a huge surprise, as most new hardware does to at least a certain extent. Unless you have money to burn, I think sitting out the first year isn't that bad of an idea.

Early adopters have expressed the opinion that how much you get out of HD-DVD (by that I mean HD-DVD specifically and not blu-ray) depends on your screen size. If you have a larger display HD-DVD will look significantly better than upscaled standard-definition DVDs. But on smaller monitors, the difference is less clear. But that is just what I have been hearing, so your YMMV.

Yeah, the 1080-720 downscaling is curious.

It isn't just an opinion about the screen size/viewing distance/resolution relationship. The BBC and other organizations have tested this thoroughly. Sound&Vision had a brief article and graphs a couple of months ago that illustrated this.

Sounds pretty promising to me. Most of the issues seem to be with software and the remote. All of which will be fixed. I would guess that the first Blu-Ray players will also be found to have problems.

Still no need to jump into the mix yet. So much to iron out with the players, new players coming from other manufacturers, Blu-Ray on the horizon, format wars, etc....

I think that we all can agree that we are anxiously awaiting a good, solid, high-def format (at a reasonable price)....

I usually cheer for HD-DVD, but that is just because I like to play devil's advocate and the Blu-Rayers (like our good friend HomeDad, who I think just wants an excuse to buy a PS3 ) seem more vocal about it. Personally I don't care who wins, as long as the competition spurs technological advancements first and the prices become more reasonable.

Which reminds me. Isn't it funny that it costs less (or at least used to a couple of years ago when I read an article about it) to release a movie on DVD than VHS (even after factoring in costs to build menus, chapters, extras) and yet we all pay more for the DVD? Now we are all going to pay a premium for high-def movies. Pretty soon, we will be paying $50 not for a box set, but just for a single flick.

Speak for yourself--I've stopped going to movie theatres because of the high prices. I can stop buying DVDs, too.

Lol, you busted me , I figure PS3 is a great way to get HD as well as some new fun games, but now that the Microsoft is going add a HD player attachment for the 360, I guess I'll wait to see the outcome of the battle.

You're right on the movie prices. Theaters are costly. I still like the comment a friend made when he watched Lord of the Rings at my house... "Why would you ever go to a movie theater again!" It was a statement, not a question, thus an '!' and not a '?' at the end of that.

Hey HomeDad, all in good fun, my friend, all in good fun...

That attachment for the 360, how does it work? Can it be added or replaced on existing 360's? A link would be nice.

Microsoft hasn't released it yet, it should be revealed at the E3 show , they said it will be an external drive. LINK

Thanks, $200? I was hoping $99. I wonder if the PQ will be as good as the existing HD DVD players.

Yeah, but even at $200, it is still a cheap(er) way to get a HD-DVD player if you already own an XBox 360?

Heck, HomeDad (I love picking on you man. All in good fun.) is going to drop $600 on a PS3 so that he can get Blu-Ray in his house... Hmmm... I wonder if he will buy games before movies, or movies before games... We'll find out his REAL reason for getting a PS3 sooner or later.

Games For the kids of course

Well I got one of the HD-XA1 and so far this thing rocks! The build quality is top shelf and I have watched many sd dvd's and 5 HD dvd's and no lockups or any problems. The sound is great,im using the analog outs.I really dont care who wins this war because im going to buy the PS3 to.I have Directv for HD and I know what there talking about over at AVS forum about HD-lite.Full HD is amazing, I just hope more movies come out soon. The ones that are coming out are the good ones.

I've got to get down to civilization somewhere where I can preview one of those babies. When you are talking about full HD do you mean 1080, just wondering how they look in 720.

I see very little bang for the buck with any of the new formats. It'll probably be several years before I any think about HD DVD stuff. I just don't see what all the fuss is about. It's just not that much better to warrent that kind of cash when there are so many other cool things to be spending my money on with home theather.

And for me I can't wait. I guess it may depend on your display. At 104" with a High-Def capable projector, any little compression flaw or artifact shows up with regular DVDs... I'm using an upconverting DVD player now to make it seem better, but true HD will be awesome!

Although, I won't jump on the band wagon just yet. Give me at least until Christmas 2007. By then we should see a lot more titles, and better players available. And who knows... Maybe someone will start leading this HD war...

Of course, HomeDad keeps pushing Blu-Ray on his PS3 he will get later this year. (This is so fun teasing HomeDad. I've never even met the guy, and I feel like any High-Def post I make, I have to poke fun at him and his dream of PS3 with Blu-Ray. Again HomeDad, all in fun. Next time you are in Iowa (yeah right) let me know. I'll treat you to dinner. Granted, it may be fast food, but just the same.)

Yes, I am still considering buying one after reading the review.

The remote is not a priority of mine. I use the MX 850.

It’s a new product, firmware updates are promised. All new products have bugs. So do old products.

I have to get a new DVD player anyway. I just need to decide if I should buy one of these or something different and wait a few more months. So, it’s either spend a couple hundred on something like the Oppo or Panny 97 now and then another few hundred on a HD player in a few months, or just buy one now.

I checked both models out at Best Buy two days ago. I did not see $300 worth of upgrades with the X1 over the A1. $300 for a remote and motorized PLASTIC door and case feet…….a complete rip off in my opinion. But, $500 for the A1 seams reasonable to me. It does a better job at up converting than the Oppo, 97s, 3910 and 5910 according to owners of all those machines on AVS.

I just got back from Best Buy where I was able to finally see the Toshiba HD A1, the setup was using an HP 42" plasma monitor, they connected it using component rather than HDMI, and I'm assuming they were using a HD demo DVD.
Overall I was not that impressed, for $499. I did not see a vast difference in picture quality over my 3910, perhaps it was the setup or the demo disc, but at this point I think I'll wait awhile before purchasing.

In response to:

Poster: HomeDad
Subject: Re: Review - Toshiba HD-A1 HD DVD Player

I just got back from Best Buy where I was able to finally see the Toshiba HD A1, the setup was using an HP 42" plasma monitor, they connected it using component rather than HDMI, and I'm assuming they were using a HD demo DVD.
Overall I was not that impressed, for $499. I did not see a vast difference in picture quality over my 3910, perhaps it was the setup or the demo disc, but at this point I think I'll wait awhile before purchasing.

-----------------------------------------------------
Yeah, but if it was Blu-Ray, or a PS3 you'd be excited, right?

Just poking fun, like usual. You are a really good sport HomeDad!

I was reading that you really need to use the HDMI, and knowing Worst Buy, they had a regular Demo DVD in there... Hard to tell. I wish these places would really get with it and set things up right. No wonder people buy online any more. If you can't trust the local guy to set things up right, then what is the point of going to see it before buying it, and then what is the point of buying local... That is another debate for another time. I don't want to steer this off topic (too much)

Dont judge on worst buys setup,those guys dont know jack.They just slap stuff together and think its going to work like it should.Trust me you need to see it at a place that someone knows up from down!

You guys might be right, I'm sure their setup played a major role, they sure won't sell many that way though. It's a 90 mile round trip for me to go to Worst Buy, if the trip hadn't primarily been a Home Depot stop I would have stuck around to ask questions about the Demo DVD, as well as having them set it up through the HDMI, provided those guys even know what HDMI is

Via component, you will not see any gains. This machine, as with 99% of up converting machines only up convert via hdmi or dvi. There is only one that I am aware of that will up convert via component.

The 2900 is still king with PQ via component by every review I’ve read.

Worst buy had it hooked via hdmi with the trailer demo disk in and I cant wait for Kong to come out,you could count hairs on him.